A day after a Kolkata sessions court handed down a life sentence to the convict in the rape and murder of a doctor at R.G. Kar Medical College, the West Bengal government moved the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, seeking permission to appeal for the death penalty.
Advocate General Kishor Datta filed the appeal before a Division Bench of Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Mohammad Shabbar Rashidi, challenging the decision made by Additional District and Sessions Judge Anirban Das on Monday, January 20, 2025.
The appeal follows disapproval expressed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee regarding the life sentence. On Tuesday, she voiced her concern, stating, “What is the meaning of a life sentence? In many cases, culprits are released on parole even after committing heinous crimes… I am truly shocked by the judgment in the RG Kar case.” She further added, “I think it is, indeed, the rarest of rare, sensitive, and heinous crimes.”
The Chief Minister, who claimed to have studied law, emphasized that such a crime, in her view, warranted the death penalty. “If a criminal is released or not punished, they might again commit a misdeed,” she said, urging society to take a strong stance against heinous crimes.
Judge Anirban Das, who passed the original sentence, had explained in his ruling that the case did not meet the stringent criteria for a death sentence. He noted, “Our duty is not to match brutality with brutality, but to elevate humanity through wisdom, compassion, and a deeper understanding of justice.” The judge also rejected the prosecution’s request for the death penalty, stating that the crime did not qualify as “rarest of the rare.”
Despite this, the Chief Minister underscored her government’s commitment to tougher penalties for heinous crimes, including the recent passage of The Aparajita Women and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill, 2024. The Bill proposes the death penalty in cases such as rape and murder, particularly involving minors. However, she lamented that the Bill is still pending approval by the Central Government and urged for its nationwide implementation.
Highlighting her party’s stance on such matters, Mamata Banerjee pointed to recent cases in West Bengal where courts have handed down the death penalty in similar crimes, including the rape and murder of minors in South 24 Parganas, Murshidabad, and Hooghly.
The case at the heart of the debate involves the tragic death of a post-graduate trainee doctor whose body was found in a seminar room at R.G. Kar Medical College on August 9, 2024. The CBI’s chargesheet named Sanjay Roy, a former civic police volunteer, as the prime suspect, accusing him of both rape and murder. The victim’s parents, echoing the Chief Minister’s sentiment, have also expressed dissatisfaction with the life sentence, arguing that the crime qualifies as “rarest of rare.”
The West Bengal government’s appeal to the Calcutta High Court reflects a deep desire for a stronger legal response to the crime, while continuing the debate over capital punishment in the state.
